Reverend recognised with top citizenship award

Long time Bayside resident and Grace Heart Church Reverend, Bruce Corben was announced as Bayside’s Citizen of the Year at the Australia Day Awards ceremony held at Brighton Yacht Club.

The award was presented to Reverend Corben in recognition of his outstanding contribution to Bayside through his work at the church where he and his team of over 20 volunteers, work tirelessly to support vulnerable members of the community and provide them with support, resources and opportunities to improve their circumstances.

Some of their initiatives include: providing cooked lunches to those who may not have access to a nutritious meal, establishing multiple community groups and providing free information sessions on a range of topics.

Alongside his work at the church, Bruce Corben has been a volunteer for the State DHHS intellectual disability service for 17 years, concentrating his efforts in the Bayside Community.

Bayside Mayor, Cr Clarke Martin congratulated Mr Corben and said the award recognises his ongoing commitment to helping others over the years.

“Bruce has made it his life’s work to help others, donating his time and energy. His continuing dedication to the community and his contribution to making Bayside a better place is truly heart-warming,” Cr Clarke said.

“Bruce is setting an example of what it means to be truly genourous and has changed the course of countless lives. He is an outstanding member of our community and Bayside is lucky to have him.”

“All the individuals and organisations recognised through these awards are making a wonderful contribution to our Bayside community and should be extremely proud of their achievement,” he said.

The 2020 Young Citizen of the Year was awarded to Emily Fairweather for her work through the community initiative she founded, Flourish Programs. Emily advocates on behalf of young people to promote anti-bullying and help teens transition from primary to secondary school.

Community Event of the Year Award went to Highett Neighbourhood Community House for their important R U Ok Day event where they hosted over 35 community and service organisations to discuss important topics on mental health. 

The Senior Citizen of the Year Award went to centenarian Ralph Butcher OAM to recognise his contribution to the families of Australian Defence Force veterans and his significant volunteering and mentorship positions in Bayside over the years.

The Australia Day awards also include two acolades specifically for contributions to Bayside’s natural environment.

The Individual Environmental Award was presented to Mr Derek Jones for his work as the Founder of Friends of Bayside Roads and his drive to keep Bayside roads clean.

The Toy Library took out the Organisational Environmental Award for its work educating community members that frequent the library to share, donate and repair toys for reuse for many years.

Community Event of the Year Award

Friends of Black Rock House- Halloween

The Friends of Black Rock House hosted a community event for Halloween, providing a safe place to partake in festivities, whilst enjoying the spooky and haunted aspects of Black Rock House. 

Sandringham Hospital- 24hr Sandringham Hospital Charity Bike Ride

The 24hr Hospital Charity Bike Ride hosted by Sandringham Hospital brought together bicycle riders to raise funds for Sandringham Hospital. The biennial event has over 40 riders raising a minimum of $1,000 in donations and ride their bikes in a relay loop between Black Rock and Mordialloc nonstop for a period of 24 hours. 

Senior Citizen of the Year Award

Sylvester Kroyherr

Sylvester is a well-known volunteer throughout the community and is currently the Vice President of the Seniors Russian Social Club "Friendship", co-ordinating excursions and conducting the monthly meetings. 

Barry Scott

Barry is the current President of the Sandringham Life Activities Club coordinating and organising walking groups and tours. Barry worked alongside Council to ensure a smooth club location move and helped facilitate renovations. 

Dr Valerie Tarrant

Valerie is a founding member of the Black Rock and Sandringham Conservation Association and assisted in persuading the Council in establishing a Community Pant Nursery. She is also a published author and in 2015 was a recipient of an OAM for so many years of hard work, dedication and success in conserving the natural environment. 

Young Citizen of the Year

Claire Pardo

Claire is a committee volunteer for Flourish Programs, a community initiative designed to build resilience and promote anti-bullying for teens transitioning into high school. Claire has mentored members of the community for several years and dedicated countless hours and energy towards the program. 

Individual Environmental Award

Elizabeth Jensen

Elizabeth is a passionate Bayside resident whose mandate is to reduce the amount of single-use plastic being found throughout the Port Phillip Bay. 

Courtenay Wood

Courtenay creates environmental awareness through her non-profit organisation Wills Reed to help people understand the the marine environment. 

Organisational Environmental Award

Robyn's Bags

A like-minded group of people who sew formed an alliance to honour Robyn, who started making reusable bags in 2012 with all proceeds going to the Children's Cancer Foundation. 

Black Rock and Sandringham Conservation Association

BRASCA has maintained, restored and cared for Bayside's natural assets for over 50 years.

Bayside Beach Patrol

Beach Patrol Australia is a network of volunteers who undertake community beach clean ups throughout Bayside.

Love Our Streets Group

Love Our Street Group aims to stop litter before it reaches the foreshore, and are considered to be the off-beach 'arm' of Beach Patrol. 

Bayside Citizen of the Year

Lisa Grant

Lisa Grant has coordinated the setup of Bayside Community Hub Facebook Account connecting the community to service, events and important information. 

Kieran Cromie

A committed contributor to his local community, Kieran has been a member of Brighton Rotary Club for 23 years, holding a range of roles including President, Treasurer and Secretary and is a driving force behind the reinvigoration of Church Street Traders' Association. 

Jodie Hickey

Jodie has been a driving force behind a major fund raiser for many years in Bayside.  Jodie has also been a long term heritage campaigner assisting the battle to protect our history in Bayside.

Steve Pearce

Steve has volunteered for many years for the Beaumaris Secondary School and local sports clubs and was instrumental in the 4 year fight to save the Beaumaris Secondary College.

Shane Benedict

Shane has been involved in range of community organisations for many years in Bayside including the Beaumaris RSL and was elected onto committee of the Beaumaris Motor Yacht Squadron 2 years ago and works tirelessly in maintaining the clubs buildings and marine infrastructure.

John Collins

For many years. John has been a friend of Banksia Reserve and long-time volunteer with the Beaumaris Football Club including a term as President. John regularly gives up his time to assist with all manner of jobs around the reserve and club and assists Council maintaining the oval.